A date-of-death appraisal pins down the fair market value of real property on the exact day an owner died. Executors, trustees, and heirs use that value to close out probate, report to the IRS, and set the stepped-up cost basis that later governs capital-gains tax when the property changes hands.
When You Need a Date-of-Death Valuation
Executors, successor trustees, CPAs, and estate attorneys order these retrospective reports when administering an estate, preparing IRS Form 706, dividing property among heirs, or documenting the stepped-up basis of inherited South Bay and San Diego County real estate. A home held in a family trust needs the same date-specific value before the trustee can distribute it or account to beneficiaries.
How a Retrospective Appraisal Is Built
Rather than today's prices, I reconstruct the market as it stood on the date of death, studying comparable sales that closed around that time in the subject's own neighborhood. The finished report lays out the property, the comparable evidence, the conditions that prevailed on that date, and a fully supported value conclusion — the level of documentation the IRS and the probate court expect to see.
Prepared for USPAP, the IRS, and the Court
Each date-of-death report is completed under USPAP and written to meet the standards of the IRS, the San Diego County Superior Court probate division, and estate counsel. Backed by more than two decades of local work and thousands of completed assignments, my reports are relied upon by attorneys, accountants, and fiduciaries throughout the region.
A Word on Stepped-Up Basis
When real property is inherited, its cost basis “steps up” to fair market value as of the date of death. A well-documented appraisal establishes that number, so heirs are taxed only on appreciation that occurs afterward — frequently a meaningful tax saving on long-held South Bay homes.
Request This Appraisal
Published fees start at $299; your exact fee is confirmed before you commit. See the full fee schedule or request a free quote.